The proliferation of network-enabled devices continues to grow in terms of both volume and type. The “Internet of Things” (or IoT) refers to the collection of devices (e.g., “smart devices”), objects (e.g., “smart objects”), and sensors having networking capabilities. IoT principles are applied in a variety of areas such as, for example, home automation. It is estimated that within a few years, the average household will include dozens of network-enabled devices and the worldwide total of network-enabled devices will reach tens of billions.
As with traditional computing, the security of such devices is a concern. The introduction of new types of network-enabled devices introduces new challenges with respect to securing those devices. Such challenges include, among others, determining which individuals are authorized to interact with a device and determining what interactions an individual is authorized to perform. Additional challenges include how to securely communicate between devices of a network and/or with third-party devices. Furthermore, different types of devices may implicate different security concerns. In some examples, adding new devices to a network can affect security, among other characteristics. While some devices may only transmit information that is read and/or collected by other devices (e.g., sensor-type devices) thus implicating relatively minor security concerns, other devices may provide and/or house sensitive information or be user-controlled thus implicating relatively major security concerns. As a result, new solutions to provide security for network-enabled devices are needed.